I have three little brothers.
If you’re a regular reader who didn’t already know that, this might give you a case of the “OH! That explains so much!” because…yeah. Living in a male-dominated household has had more than one effect on me. Sometimes I laugh at jokes that are less-than ladylike. I can’t host Super Bowl parties, because I give up on actually hosting once the game comes on (confirmed: ability to run for beers between downs). Last night, I went to Django Unchained–when Terantino comes around, Les Mis will just have to wait. And although I never got too into cars or video games, I can pretend to care like a boss.
Perhaps this would have happened without the male influences–my mom has a tomboy streak herself (though she also had 6 brothers growing up).
For the little brothers, Christmas and birthdays are a time for me to drop the “pretending to care” and, you know, show that I actually care—maybe not about Halo, but definitely about the boys themselves. Typically, this is done with a present.
Yikes.
Buying gifts for dudes sucks. In the weeks leading up to Christmas, my HUGE blessing of having so many fantastic men in my life became a serious curse. They’re so different: The youngest and I will talk on the phone for hours about football standings and lockout drama. The oldest is a minimalist and gamer who just moved out (the “strong but silent” type, let’s say). The middle brother is outdoorsy, social, hilarious, and looks too much like Justin Bieber to be up to any good. They’re all wonderful, and funny, and I could legitimately brag about them ALL DAY. But I cannot figure out what to buy for them, at least not without a solid dose of creativity or inspiration. And even though they’re always like “Dude. Timmy’s card. It’s really not that hard, Shauna,” I feel like I need to…not do that. Because my siblings are a huge blessing, and I want to do my best to show them that.
Though a Timmy’s card is a pretty great gift, too.
This Christmas, the boys (my three brothers and dad alike) did pretty well, despite how painful the picking was. Between each other, myself, my mother (and the dog, for some reason) we ended up figuring it out. And since I know what a pain it can be, I thought I’d share with you some of my favourite gifts for guys that came out from under our tree:
Shaunanagins 